The Last Night
by inlike12
Summary: lenxhino on the night of the cultural festival dance...in short chapters.
1. LIGHTS

LIGHTS

He sees her in the center of the brightly lit room; the amber lights making her glow even more, if that were even possible. Several boys surround her, and she offers them all her good-natured laugh. He longed to be the only one she would smile to, the only one she would laugh with.

* * *

She catches a glimpse of blue hair from the corner of her eye and cranes her neck, trying to see above the boys crowding around her. There he is, standing near the corner, looking out of place, even though he obviously belonged in this world of tuxedos and ball gowns, of cufflinks and silk gloves.


	2. Chapter 2

SONG

The first song plays and he sees the green-haired boy ask her for a dance. She nods and he lets out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He watches as she is led to the dance floor, someone else's hand holding hers, someone else's arm around her waist.

* * *

The girl sees him stride out the door, but she is whisked away before she can have more than a mere glimpse.

"You look beautiful," her partner says.

She smiled and thanked him, but throughout the dance her mind was fixed on someone else.


	3. Chapter 3

STARS

"I don't have much time left."

He looks up at the night sky. It was a starry night that evening, and he remembers how, on a night like this, he had told her about Germany. He remembers how, on that night which was so much like this night, her smile had remained frozen on her face when she had been told that it was not just a short term study trip. On that night, he had taken her out on a date, on that night, he had bandaged her foot, on that night, he had finally told her what everyone else had already known long before. He was leaving tomorrow.

* * *

The song ends, and after a polite round of applause she excuses herself. Tsuchiura looks at her with an unreadable expression on his face, seemingly a mixture of sadness and jealousy and understanding and resignation and even a bit of wistful happiness.

"Go get him."

She thanks him and, picking up her skirts, begins to run.


	4. Chapter 4

HUM

He walks on in the dark, getting further and further away from the festive lights and the merry laughter. His feet lead him to a familiar building, and he climbs up slowly, taking it all in. How much of his life he has spent here! He himself admits that he had spent more time in these practice rooms than he had with his family. It would be his last time to ever set foot in these corridors; strangely, he finds that he would miss Seiso Academy. Tsukimori does not feel like practicing tonight. Instead, he enters an empty practice room and sinks to the floor, resting his head against the wood-paneled walls. The last time he had done this, it had been with _her_. Closing his eyes, he begins to hum the tune that had come to mean more to him than worthless trophies and awards and medals.

* * *

She peers out cautiously into the night and catches sight of a tall, retreating figure heading towards the school buildings. His long strides are difficult for her to match with heels. She stops for a moment and takes off her shoes and sighs in relief as she rubs her slightly swollen ankles and continues to follow him. She should've known better than to wear uncomfortable shoes. He had, after all, scolded her before. She doesn't regret wearing them then, though. Because of those blisters on her feet, she had gotten to see a side of him that she'd never seen before.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCOVERY

Memories start flooding in as he continues to hum their song. His head on her shoulder, his hand around her wrist, her face as he plays with his mother, her expression as the dolphins leapt into the sky. He opens his eyes and his heart is heavy. Why did she have to come into his life? Why did he choose to leave? The door opens.

* * *

She wanders the corridors of the music building and comes upon a lighted room. Cautiously she peers in, and, in the corner of the glass pane, sees a leather-clad foot. She is alarmed.

_Is he sick again?_

Pushing open the door, the faint strains of Ave Maria drift out.


	6. Chapter 6

MEETING

He springs up from the floor and stops humming to himself just as she comes in.

"What are you doing here, Hino?" he asks coldly, although inside, his heart beats quickly, wild with hope and anticipation.

"I-I just wanted to see you," she says, blushing. "I know you're leaving tomorrow…so I just wanted to—to say goodbye…"

* * *

She enters the room and sees not a sick Tsukimori but a hostile one. She wonders what he was doing by himself and feels sad at the realization that he had no friends to share the fun with, that he was lonely. He asks what she was doing there, and for a brief moment her mind is blank. What **_was_** she doing there, anyway? Regaining her composure, she stammers.

"I-I just wanted to see you. I know you're leaving tomorrow…so I just wanted to—to say goodbye…"

"Dance with me."


	7. Chapter 7

REQUEST

"Dance with me," he says. The words leave his mouth without warning, a rare occurrence for someone as controlled as he was. Inwardly he winces, but it is too late to take it back now. Anyway, a part of him wants her to say yes. He watches her as a slight tinge of pink appears on her cheeks, and her wide, golden eyes blink in surprise.

* * *

She is taken aback. She had expected him to brush her aside, say something callous, and ask her to leave him alone; instead he asks her for a dance. Her heart is giddy. She is pleasantly surprised and nods. He steps forward.


	8. Chapter 8

DANCE

She had agreed, by some miracle from the stars. He silently thanks the heavens for this last dance with the girl he loved. Stepping forward, he slowly, gently places a hand on her waist and intertwines the other in hers. He marvels at how comfortable his hands feel with hers, as though they belonged together, both a part of the same puzzle. There are no inhibitions tonight. He starts to hum Schubert's Ave Maria. She would understand the meaning behind the song he chose, the message he desperately wanted to convey, but did not have enough courage to do so. She smiles and blushes slightly when she hears, and he cannot help but smile with her.

* * *

He places a hand on her waist and holds her hand in his, and she relishes the feel of his touch. It was bittersweet knowing that this would be the last time she'd see him, possibly forever. He begins to hum Ave Maria, and she smiles and flushes. It would be her imagination, wishful thinking, but could it be that he chose to hum that tune for a certain reason? They begin to dance, moving slowly in the small, cramped room. Soon she finds herself humming along with him, and this duet reminds her of that night at the villa, where their violins had sang together, creating music that was more heartwarming, more sweet, more emotional than any she'd ever experienced.

* * *

Thanks to everyone who reviewed my short short chappies,...i apologize for their agonizingly short length

merry christmas!

click the green button down there, please!


	9. Chapter 9

REFLECTIONS

All too soon, the song ends and he leans his head against hers, drunk with emotion. Breathing in, he takes note of her distinct smell of jasmines and cherry blossoms, clinging to it desperately.

"I'm leaving tomorrow," he says, and then it hits him. He was leaving for Germany tomorrow, with hardly a chance of ever seeing her again. Her hands move toward his neck and she clings to him. Locked in a tight embrace, she whispers, "I wish you weren't leaving."

* * *

It is selfish of her to say that, she knows. He had his whole future ahead of him in Germany, then America, maybe even Vienna. That was the world he belonged to, and she would only drag him down. The dull ache in her chest compels her to lean towards him.

"I'll miss you, Tsu—Tsukimori-kun." She stands on the tips of her toes and shyly pecks him on the cheek. Blushing furiously, she waits for him to push her away but he does not. Looking up at his face, she is both frightened and surprised to see that he has not moved.

* * *

(pitiful face) please review! comments, suggestions...compliments, flames, I'll take it!


	10. Chapter 10

REALIZATIONS

He blinks. Did she kiss him? He tries to meet her eyes but she breaks her gaze instantly and quickly looks down at their feet, but not before he takes note of the furious red color in her cheeks. So. She _did_ kiss him.

* * *

She feels her chin being lifted up to meet his eyes. His cold fingers are startlingly different from her warm face.

_The body is cold, but the heart is warm._

She is ashamed and doesn't want to look into his eyes. Shame for being so brazen, for daring to kiss him, but his gentle touch seems to tell her that he will not hurt her. Surprisingly, his caramel eyes are soft when they gaze at her and she blushes again, for the millionth time that night.

* * *

o.O...wow. this is the most boring chapter yet. Sorry, sorry. The next will be better, I promise. Longer, too. hehe. Review please!


	11. Chapter 11

wow...i haven't updated my stories in such a long time...heheh...sorry. well, anyway, here is the penultimate chapter

* * *

Confessions

Staring at her pretty face, flaming up yet again, he senses the urge to make his feelings known, before it was too late. So he does. It was as good a time as any, and he realizes that she was too special a girl to pass by. Taking a deep breath, he decides to take the plunge. Although this wasn't really a thought he wanted to acknowledge, what with his pride, he knew that if she rejected him, it wouldn't matter because he was leaving the day after.

"Ka- Kaho," he starts, suddenly losing the will to look at her. Her eyes widen and her mouth opens, but he cuts her off before she can say anything.

"Please…let me say this…before I leave tomorrow."

"I used to think you were just some amateur…someone who didn't deserve to be in the concours. You admitted, after all, that you didn't really know anything about music--"

She bites her lip and wonders where this conversation was going. He had called her Kaho, which was strange for him, and that moment her heart soared, thinking that he might share her feelings for him, but hearing him speak, it sounded as though he just wanted to tell her exactly what he thought.

"—but now, looking back, I think I was just jealous."

Jealous of what? she wonders. Her playing? Impossible.

"Your music was exactly what I wanted mine to be; it was sweet, filled with emotion, gentle…it could affect people in such a way that when you played, everyone could see what you felt…it was like my parent's music…that special kind that, no matter how hard I tried, I could not achieve."

Her eyes brim with tears when she sees his expression—longing, sad—he looked less like the cold perfectionist than the vulnerable boy he was. She loved that he was comfortable enough around her to reveal these things that he kept hidden beneath his strong façade.

"But then," he continues, tenderness filling his eyes, "then I…I came to know you…and you inspired me…you taught me to enjoy music…you helped me overcome that…that fear of not meeting my parent's expectations…you helped me realize that those expectations I thought were theirs were actually mine...and…and you made me fall in love with you." He blushes madly at the last part and so does she, and at that moment her heart feels as though it will fill her entire being.

"Kaho, my music became what it is right now because of you…because of my feelings for you…and I'm afraid that if I leave, it won't be the same."

Her only response is to kiss him.


	12. Chapter 12

PROMISE

Her lips were soft and tender, and when they meet, he thinks of strawberries. He loved strawberries. His hands make their way to her face, and they gently cup her soft, warm cheeks, thumbs brushing lightly upon her cheekbones.

* * *

She wonders, at first, if it was wise of her to just kiss him like that, but soon, all doubt vanishes. The feeling was extraordinary to her, kissing him, her hands around his neck, his on her face. She wishes they could stay like that forever, but, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Reluctantly, they break apart. He takes her hands in his and places light, soft kisses on her knuckles. Their heads together, she whispers, "I'll wait. I'll wait for you, Len Tsukimori, if you promise to come back."

* * *

She will wait. He will come back. Of course he will. As they promise each other, the fizzing boom of fireworks light up the night sky, and the lights cast a shadow upon their connected bodies, heads together, hands interlocked, and hearts beating as one.

* * *

Done! Whoo! Well, I know the last bit about the hearts was a bit cheesy, so if you think I should change it to something less corny, comment please!

(oh, and about winter break...I'm really really sorry for not updating soon. school's been really taking up my time. hope you guys understand...)


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